


cool these engines, calm these jets

by orphan_account



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alpha Harry, Alpha/Beta/Omega Dynamics, M/M, Omega Zayn, with a lil bit of side lilo just bc
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-04-15
Updated: 2015-05-08
Packaged: 2018-03-23 01:42:54
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 18,835
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3750256
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Zayn is an omega who's determined to remain unbonded, until he meets a certain alpha that makes him think twice about everything he thought he knew.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I wanna say a huge thank you to Angie, who's helped me with so many fic recs <3 I know you were hoping for omega Harry, but I promise I'll work on something cute and juicy for you once I'm done with this.
> 
> And I hope you guys enjoy my take on this universe. I've read a lot of different fics lately, tried to do my research, and tried to put together bits and pieces from what I've gathered from them.  
> Title from Maroon 5's "Secret"

Zayn is an omega, and he hates it.

He hates how he's at the bottom of the chain for something he had no control over it, something that was decided for him. He hates how fragile people assume he is. He hates all of the attention he gets because of his face, or his scent. He hates the hungry looks and roaming hands when he goes clubbing with his friends. He hates entitled alphas, and how crazy he gets for them when his heats come.

Zayn doesn't want any of it. 

He isn't just this pretty little thing. He doesn't need anyone to take care of him, doesn't need someone to bond to. Zayn wants to be his own person. That's why he got he took up boxing and working out, even though exercising nearly kills him every time. That's why he got himself covered in tattoos, that's why he grows his beard. He is  _not_  fragile. Zayn refuses to let himself be defined by anything he didn't choose. He refuses to let himself be defined by another person.

And that's how he finds himself at 23, still unbonded, no matter how many people Louis tried to set him up with. Louis is his best mate, another omega, like him. And much like Zayn, Louis doesn't exactly fit the omega stereotype. Physically, yes, he's short, and pretty, bright blue eyes, and kinda of curvy all over, but personality wise, just--no. He's loud, and bossy, and always gets what he wants because he's either smart enough to coerce people into doing what he says, or just annoys them till they do.

They met at uni, a couple of the few omegas that actually got there, and haven't got sidetracked by bonding, and mating, and having babies, when they were paired to share a dorm room. They hit it off right away, over their love for comic books, and tattoos, and the fact that they were both, well, omegas. It was nice, having someone who knows exactly what you feel, and what you had to go through all your life. 

Except that on their third year, Louis met Liam, an alpha. And as Zayn got to know Liam, he understood what Louis saw in him. Liam was nice, really nice, for an alpha. He wasn't too bossy, or demanding, and never used his alpha voice on Louis, not even when Louis was being a little shit at 3 in the morning, high off his mind, pestering Liam about throwing water balloons off the top of their building.

Sometimes Zayn wished he had an alpha voice, just to get Louis to shut up, because during the first weeks after they bonded, Louis just wouldn't stop talking about Liam. About how good he was, and how his eyes were adorable, how he was so big and strong and Louis just wanted to climb him like a tree every time he saw him. Zayn knew it was only a matter of time before Louis moved out of their dorm, and into Liam's.

When Louis did move, his side of the room was taken over by Niall, this lovely, cheery beta who ate and drank way too much, and was possibly one of the smartest people Zayn knew. At first, he had no idea how Niall knew half of the stuff he told Zayn when they were hanging out, but it didn't stop Zayn from being fascinated, even if Niall would just shrug when Zayn asked him how he learned about it. Later, Zayn would find out Niall had a  _really_  good memory. He was always reading things here and there, just this quick pass of the eye, like he'd go through a magazine someone left around, or through a random book at the library, and bam, information stuck to his brain. He turned into quite the study partner, easily memorizing Zayn's notes, then quizzing Zayn on it.

Then they graduated, and Zayn was still unbonded. It's not like he was a virgin, or that he didn't date, but every time people started getting too clingy, or possessive, Zayn would pull away. He was still young, still had to make a name for himself before he would start thinking about committing to someone. And that didn't sit too well with Louis. Louis, who was already bonded, and living with his mate, blissfully happy.

He started setting Zayn up with every one of Liam's alpha friends, and each blind date went worst than the last. One guy thought it'd be okay to straight up sniff Zayn. The other one thought he was doing Zayn a favor by telling him he needed to gain some weight if he wanted to be an attractive omega. And then there was this guy who actually just started talking about how hard Zayn was making him. Seriously, how a nice guy like Liam could have such shitty friends, was beyond Zayn. So when Louis comes around talking about this guy, Harry Styles, Zayn just says "Don't even bother," rolling his eyes. Louis kicks him in the shin, but doesn't say anything else.

Except Louis is still Louis, and Zayn should've known better, should've known "no" doesn't mean shit when Louis wants something, he should've expected the extra person sitting at their usual booth when Zayn gets to the bar. Liam, Louis and Niall are already there, and then there's someone else, most possibly Harry, who has his back turned to the entrance of the pub. 

Zayn is already glaring at Louis when he reaches the booth, and has an excuse at the tip of his tongue to get him out of this situation as fast as possible, but Louis robs him of the opportunity, announcing Zayn's arrival as loudly as he can.

"Zayn, you're finally here! This is Harry," he says, gesturing to the person in front of him. Zayn only means to be polite when he glances down at Harry, but when he does, he can't look away. Harry is gorgeous, to say the least. His hair is a mess of chocolate curls, his lips are plump and pink, and his eyes are so so beautifully green, even if they are a little bit too far apart. Zayn can't really see much from the rest of his body because of how he's sitting down, but Zayn  _can_  see how strong his shoulders are, and how broad his chest is. Then Harry is offering his hand for Zayn to shake, and god, his hands are big, his fingers so long.

"Hello," he says, grinning, and oh fuck, there are dimples. And his voice is deep, deep enough to make Zayn want to bear his neck for him to lay claim. He automatically hates Harry for making him feel this way, but shakes his hand nonetheless. 

"Hi," is all he says, fighting his urge to smile and try to please Harry. He takes another look around the table, and honestly, his friends are ridiculous. Niall, Louis and Liam are piled up in one side of the booth, while Harry is alone in the other, forcing Zayn to take the seat next to him. Zayn does, already bracing himself for the invasion of his private space, because alphas don't tend to be aware of what personal space is when they're on a date with him, but the invasion never comes. 

Harry doesn't move closer, and seems to be as nervous and uncomfortable about it as Zayn is. He's clearly trying not to show it, but Zayn feels it, can smell it on Harry, along with something else, something rich and sweet, maybe like vanilla, or... like something freshly baked and out of the oven, which is also probably coming from Harry. It's refreshing, both Harry's scent, and the fact that he's not an overly confident asshole.

Or at least he doesn't seem to be.

As the night progresses, the nervousness dissipates, and Harry still doesn't give any signs of being a jerk. He's quite pleasant, actually, and goofy in a way Zayn hasn't seen before. He tells them awful jokes, and trips over his own feet when it's his turn to get them drinks, even if he isn't all that tipsy at all. He's also really respectful, doesn't try to touch Zayn without asking if it's okay, which Zayn appreciates.

When they decide to call it a night, Louis and Liam get into a cab, while Zayn and Niall are sharing another. Harry is going with the first couple, but before they get into their cab, Harry comes up to Zayn with a slightly drunk smile on his face. It's quite endearing.

"So, we know what Louis was trying to do when he invited me here tonight, but like, even if you're not interested in anything else, I'd really like for us to become friends," he says, with a half shrug-slash-lightly hunched shoulders. 

Despite of what Zayn was thinking when he first got to the pub, he finds himself smiling, nodding and saying "I'd like that too."

***

Harry is around all the time.

His scent is everywhere, Zayn's sure he smells like Harry so much, other people probably even think Zayn's bonded to him. And they don't even do anything. Nothing sexual, anyway. Harry's always around to watch a movie, to cook for Niall and Zayn, sometimes he just comes around, spreads all his paperwork on Zayn's floor, and lies there, reading in silence, while Zayn works on his own stuff. 

It's weird, so weird. It just isn't normal, this isn't normal alpha behavior. Harry seems to be the least alpha of all the alpha's Zayn's met. Like Louis, he's got the body for his gender. Harry is big, and strong, all long limbs, thick thighs and a muscled back that Zayn dreamed about squeezing and scratching as Harry moves between his legs (though he'll never admit it). But he has the coordination of a baby deer who's learning how to walk, Zayn having to hold him up and stop him from tripping more than once already, even when he's sober.

And he's good. Harry is so good, and polite, always ready to help anyone out, no matter if he's known them since he was a kid, or never met them before. He does things for Zayn a lot more than he asks for things, and while Zayn's learned that he's a natural born charmer, he still hasn't made a move on Zayn, not even once. They have flirted a few times, but mostly when they're drunk, and weirdly enough, Zayn was the one who initiated it. Harry is funny, and lovely, and ridiculous, and it just isn't right. Zayn starts to think he's had the wrong idea on alphas during his entire life, and that just can't be. 

So he pushes.

Zayn tries to get Harry to snap, to catch him on a lie, to make him drop this goody-goody act, because this just doesn't happen. And when Harry does snap, it's for an entirely different reason Zayn was expecting.

They had all gone for a club, Niall's idea because he just felt like dancing, and while it was not really Zayn's scene, going out with the lads was always good fun. They were all on the dancefloor, Louis basically already hanging from Liam's neck because he gets way to handsy when he drinks, Niall chatting up some girl, and Harry being ridiculous as always, when they decided it was Zayn's turn to get a drink. 

Zayn rolls his eyes, but goes anyway because it probably is his turn indeed. Except he doesn't get very far before someone grabs his wrist and pulls hard enough for Zayn to bump against them with a thud.

"Listen, mate, I'm not interested, okay?" Zayn says, trying to push away, but the guy just holds on, tries to get Zayn closer.

"C'mon, just a dance, I'll show you a good time," the guy slurs, smelling like alcohol and arousal. It makes Zayn's stomach churn.

"I  _said_  I'm not interested," Zayn says more forcefully, and pushes harder. The guy sways, clearly not expecting Zayn to fight back, but he's big, bigger than Zayn, clearly stronger, and he bounces back pretty quickly.

"Feisty little thing, aren't you?" he says with an amused smirk, and darker eyes. Just as he starts to tug on Zayn's wrist again, and Zayn starts pulling his other fist back, ready to throw a punch, Harry shows up.

"Hey, buddy, how about you back off," he says, taking hold of the guys wrist, and probably squeezing on it too tight, if how fast he drops Zayn's hand is any indication. 

"He yours?" the guy asks, pointing at Zayn, but not even looking at him right now, eyes trained on Harry. Zayn can feel it in the air, how angry Harry is getting by the second, and Zayn feels this incredible urge to hold him and kiss him until he calms down.

"He is his own, now back the fuck off," Harry says through gritted teeth, hands curled into fists by his side, and Zayn's chest aches with the need to touch Harry, to reach for him and never let him go. It would've been a whole lot easier for Harry to just lie and say "yes, he's mine", but the fact that he didn't, that he respects Zayn enough to say he isn't anyone else's but his own, makes Zayn's heart grow three sizes too big with a affection for him.

The guy doesn't seem to understand, though, because he snorts and tries to reach for Zayn again. And that's when Harry loses it. He all but growls, and grabs the guy's wrist before he manages to touch Zayn, and pulls on it, bending the guy's arm at his elbow, and holding it against the guys back, making him wince in pain. Harry says something into the guys ear, too low for Zayn to catch over the loud sound of the club, but the guy hears it, and soon he's nodding. Harry let's go of him then, glaring at the guy until he gets lost into the sea of people.

He is so angry his hand is shaking with it when he lifts it to run it through his hair. Zayn is stunned, to say the least. He didn't think Harry was able to hurt a fly, and yet, there he is, after almost breaking a guy's hand. Zayn is stunned, and actually kind of confused, because the whole scene shouldn't have been as hot as he thought, and he's a little bit annoyed because he'll go to his grave saying he could've taken the guy down, nervous because he can feel what Harry's feeling so strongly, and a little bit in love after Harry's sign of respect for him, all at the same time. 

When Zayn finds it in himself to move, he reaches for Harry, touching his shoulder. Harry almost jumps at the contact, eyes wide, and all the anger coming off of him subsides, his shoulders relax, then his brows get drawn in with concern.

"I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to, I just-- he--" Zayn cuts him off by shaking his head.

"No, it's okay, come on, come here, it's alright," Zayn says, pulling him close, wrapping his arms around Harry's middle. Harry hugs him back, burrowing his face at the top of Zayn's head, and Zayn can't stop himself from doing the same on Harry's chest, breathing in deeply, relaxing as Harry's sweet scent hits him.

"Are you okay?" Harry pulls away to ask, and Zayn nods.

"Yeah, it's all good. I could've dealt with him, though."

"I know you could," Harry says, and the way he sounds so sincere, like he actually believes in Zayn, makes Zayn's chest hurt again, "I wasn't thinking, I'm sorry."

Zayn shakes his head again, and smiles so Harry knows it really is okay, "Really, it's fine," he says. Harry studies him for a second, then smiles softly, like he believes it. "Wanna get out of here, though?" Zayn asks, and Harry's soft smile turns into one of his usual grins.

"Yeah, let me just tell the guys, then we'll go. Get us our coats?"

"Okay, I'll meet you at the front," Zayn says, nodding. Harry squeezes Zayn's neck lightly just once, then lets go, disappearing as well as he goes after their friends. 

When they get outside, they realize it's started to rain heavily, and they know there's no chance of them finding a cab soon, so they run through the streets, laughing when Harry trips, slips, and nearly falls down because of the slippery pavement, until they take cover in a diner. They shrug off their coats before the water seeps through and into their clothes, and take a booth by the window. They order pancakes, and eggs, and coffee, Harry's idea of having a midnight breakfast. 

They're silent for a little while, Harry keeps taping his fingertips over the table, running his other hand through his drenched hair as he looks out the window. Zayn can't stop thinking about how beautiful he is, even with how worried he looks. Zayn knows he's probably thinking about what happened, replaying the night's event in his head, brows drawn tight, lip caught under his teeth. 

Zayn reaches for him, places a hand on top of Harry's, and squeezes. Harry looks at him them, his lip red and slick when he lets go of it, and smiles.

"Thank you for tonight," Zayn says, rubbing his thumb over the skin on the back of Harry's hand.

"It was nothing, really. I shouldn't have meddled... Should've let you punch him right in the nose," he says with an amused grin.

Zayn chuckles, and nods, "You should've."

"Well, I'm hoping there won't be a next time, but if it does happen, I promise to just stand by and clap when you're through with him."

"Deal," Zayn nods, grinning. 

They eat their food, and talk, until it stops raining, and they're finally able to get a cab. Zayn is the first to be dropped off, saying goodbye to Harry at the door. He runs straight inside to shower, and gets to bed right after.

All in all, it's been a good night.

 

Except two days later, Zayn's sick. He's sick, so sick, he's positive he's dying. He has a fever, and a runny nose, and he coughs more than he breathes properly. He decides never to leave his bed again, specially when everyone else seems more than happy to help him out. Sure, Zayn doesn't really like when people try to take care of him, but this time, he thinks there's no way around it. Usually, Zayn fights his biological instincts with all his might, but now, sick as he is, he gives in, and enjoys being spoiled. 

Niall makes sure Zayn won't forget his antibiotics, Louis and Liam come around to take care of Zayn's pets, and Harry brings him soup and cuddles him even when Zayn says he'll get sick too. Zayn'll never admit it, but it's the nicest thing, having a nice warm body all wrapped up around him, having someone to pet his hair and hold him close as he falls asleep, and he secretly hates that his nose is so clogged up, because he can't feel Harry's scent like that. 

When he starts getting better three days later, Zayn slowly goes back to acting like himself again. He leaves his bed, and tells everyone thanks, but he can take care of himself now. Harry seems a bit reluctant to let him go, but like always, does as Zayn asks him to, and leaves him alone. Zayn changes his sheets, and scrubs himself twice because his nose is working now, and Harry's scent is everywhere, more than it usually is, and it makes Zayn regret telling him to go. 

Two weeks goes by, and things go back to normal. It's Friday night and the whole gang is just hanging out after dinner at Zayn's place, Louis curled up in Liam's lap, and Zayn got one of his cats on his because for whatever reason, Harry dragged Niall onto his instead of Zayn, and is whispering something in Niall's ear that's making him crack up. It's cool, it's whatever, Zayn's not even a little bit jealous.

He's feeling a bit moody and snappish, but he'll blame it on the discomfort he's feeling. He feels like he's hot all over, his skin feels too tight, and his clothes are making him feel all itchy. If this is him getting sick again, he's going to punch someone. Ok, not someone, but probably his pillow. So he stays quiet as the usual shenanigans happen, putting the cat down on the floor after a few minutes because it's starting to feel like he's holding a little oven. He gets up and goes to the kitchen to get some water, and maybe splash some on his face.

Zayn cracks the kitchen window open, and sits on top of the counter, pulling out a cigarette and lighting it up. That first drag combined with the chill night air helps him calm down a little. He loses track of time, lighting a second cigarette when the first is done, and presses his forehead against the cold glass as he smokes. Just as he is stubbing the cigarette out, Harry pops his head through the kitchen door.

"The guys are leaving, and--Are you alright?" he asks, stepping into the kitchen.

Zayn nods, even if he doesn't feel all that great, "Yeah, just--I don't know." Harry walks over to him, and presses the back of his hand to Zayn's cheek, then his forehead.

"Are you getting sick again? You're all warm," he says, sounding concerned, but Zayn isn't even listening to it properly, only focusing on how amazing Harry smells up close, so he just shrugs. "D'you want me to stay? I could stay and help out."

"You don't have to," Zayn says, even if all he wants it to pull Harry against him.

"I know I don't have to, but I could. If you wanted." Zayn looks up at him, and it's a lost fight, he knows it.

"Yeah, stay," he says, letting his head rest on Harry's shoulder.

Harry makes Zayn take some cold medicine, and checks his temperature, before they go to bed. Zayn is feeling restless and uncomfortable, keeps rolling around on the bed trying to find a decent position, until Harry pulls Zayn against his chest and starts scratching his scalp. Zayn closes his eyes and presses himself as close as he can against Harry, letting his rich scent and calm breathing lull him to sleep. 

 

When Zayn wakes up, his head is all fuzzy. He's too warm, his clothes sticking to his body, and he's hard, holy fuck, he's so hard. Harry is holding him tightly, Zayn's back to Harry's chest. Zayn can feel Harry big and hard pressing against him, and Zayn wants, no, he  _needs_  that inside him. Zayn pushes back, starts rubbing himself against it, starts to feel his slick between his thighs. Harry whimpers softly in his sleep, fingertips pressing hard into Zayn's hip, and then he wakes up, cursing, starts to pull away like he's been burned, and that's no good. 

"No, no, c'mere," Zayn whines, turning around and reaching for Harry, trying to tug his clothes off. Everything would be so much better if they were naked. It's so hot, and clothes are so stupid, they should be naked. Harry shakes his head, though, and pulls himself up and off the bed.

"Zayn, no, you don't want this, fuck, you're in heat," he says, trying to pry Zayn's hands off of him, from where Zayn was trying to pull his sweatpants down, and no, that's not right, Zayn's on suppressants, why are heats happening? And also, who gives a fuck, Zayn doesn't care, he just wants Harry to come back to bed, and get naked, and fucking knot him already. He probably even says so, because Harry is shaking his head, and saying "no, that's the heat talking, I have to go," darting around the room, picking up his clothes from the floor.

Harry manages to get his things, and is almost at the door when Zayn catches up to him, "Harry, please, please stay, want you, need you," Zayn says, wrapping his arms around Harry's shoulders, because it is true. He's gone through this before, and he's got his toys and all, but Harry is right here, and he's so pretty, and so good, and takes care of Zayn so well, why can't he see Zayn  _needs him_  right now?

"Zayn,  _please_ ," Harry says, placing his hands on Zayn's hips to push him away, but Zayn just hugs him tighter, and presses his lips against Harry's before he can say anything else. For a glorious second there, Harry's hands tighten around him, and he's kissing Zayn back, parting his lips and moaning as he slips his tongue into Zayn's mouth. It's so good, Harry's body big and solid against his, Harry's lips so soft, and Zayn can't stop himself from grinding against Harry, so needy he thinks he could come from this alone. And then all of the sudden, it's gone, Harry pushing him away with a pained whine, and growling "No, stay here, lock your door" practically sprinting towards the door, leaving Zayn alone, hard and leaking and frustrated.

Zayn does as he was told, though, because his body screams for him to be good, even if Harry didn't stay. He locks the door, and shrugs off all of his clothes, it's hot, too hot, Zayn feels like he's burning up from the inside. Zayn slides to the floor, for a brief moment thinking he'll regret it because he'll have to clean it later, but he doesn't think he has the strength to carry himself back to his bedroom, and gets a hand around himself. 

He closes his eyes, breathing in deeply, and moaning when he still feels Harry's scent all around him. Zayn starts stroking himself, thinking about Harry's lips, and his tongue and his fingers, and what it'd be like if Harry hadn't pulled away. How easy it'd be for him to just push their pants down and slid between Zayn's legs. He wondered how Harry would do it, if it'd be nice, and slow, and thorough, or if he'd go hard and fast, if he'd hold Zayn down and make him take it, panting against Zayn's neck.

Zayn groaned at the thought, suddenly painfully aware of how empty he felt, reaching down and pushing two fingers inside himself, moving them in time with the hand he had around his cock. It didn't take too long for him to come once he'd started, the first few orgasms were always quick and unsatisfying. 

It was going to be a long week.

***

About five days later, Zayn starts to feel his heat coming to an end. He doesn't need to get off every hour or so, doesn't feel all that empty without a knot, he's not that restless. Like he did after he got sick, he changes his sheets into clean ones, and takes a nice long bath, washing all the slick and his own dried come from his body. God, he fucking hates his heats. Why did it even happen, anyway? 

He starts thinking about it, and--shit, the antibiotics. Everyone knows antibiotics and suppressants don't work well together, how the fuck could he have forgotten about it? He's never getting sick, ever again. And now that he's thinking, he starts to remember: Harry. Harry, and how Zayn threw himself at him. He feels his whole body flush with embarrassment as he presses the heels of his hands to his eyes. Shit.

But he also remembers how Harry actually managed to pull himself away, to not give in when it would be so easy to just do whatever he wanted to, because there was no way Zayn would have denied him anything back then. He's torn between being grateful, and a little bit disappointed. Zayn remembers their kiss, and how Harry's body felt against him, and he realizes how badly he wants it. How badly he wants Harry, someone who knows him, and respects him, who isn't trying to  _own_  him.

Except--what if Harry doesn't want him back? Because, yeah, they kissed, and Zayn could feel and smell how aroused Harry was when they woke up together, but that could easily just be his natural body reaction. Harry is an alpha, his body is programmed to react like that to the scent of an omega in heat. And the fact that he was able to fight his natural born urges must mean something, right?

Zayn feels his chest tighten at that possibility, and that just won't do. He's never wanted anyone like that before, never wanted a mate, a bond, but now he's more than certain that he wants all of it, with Harry. He gets out of the shower, dries himself off, and gets dressed with new found determination. He gets his phone out, and dials Harry's number, chewing on his bottom lip while it rings.

"Zayn!" is the first thing Harry says, sounding surprised and relieved. 

"Hey," Zayn says back, smiling, even thought he's feeling really nervous after his revelation about his feelings for Harry.

"Are you ok? Heat's over?"

"Yeah, yeah, I'm alright... I just wanted to call and say, well, y'know, sorry, for the way I acted. And like, thank you," he says, feeling his cheeks heating up as he remembers it.

"Oh, no, don't worry, it's not like you could control it."

"Yeah, but still. S'just, the antibiotics messed up my suppressants, and... I didn't know it was going to happen, and you were...you were--just, thank you for being strong enough. Shit, I'm so embarrassed."

"No, don't be, c'mon. You didn't know, it's all good. All forgotten, don't worry about it." And ouch, that hurt. Zayn doesn't want Harry to forget it. Zayn wants Harry to want him as badly as he wants Harry.

Still, "Great," is what he says instead. "Hey, wanna do something later?"

"Sure!" Harry says, and Zayn smiles. He's going to do this.

He's going to fucking sweep Harry off his feet.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> second time posting this chapter today because i decided to add more stuff to it, hope you'll enjoy it, and sorry for taking so long to update! xx

Ok, so maybe wooing Harry wasn't going to be as easy as Zayn thought it would.

Zayn was determined to start being more flirty when he met Harry after their latest phone call, but then they were there, and Zayn realized he had no idea what to do. Of course, he knew how to flirt, and pursue his interests, but Harry was so...  _Harry_ , and they'd been friends for quite some time now, and Zayn didn't know how to go from friends to more than that. 

So he didn't do a thing. They met for dinner, where Harry acted like nothing happened, and Zayn thought it was for the best. " _Hey, remember when I begged you to fuck me that one time? aha!_ " was probably not a great way to start a conversation. They ate their food, and Zayn listened as Harry told him everything that happened during the days he'd been away. 

It was weird meeting up with Harry after Zayn had his 'revelation', it was like seeing Harry for the first time all over again, as Zayn watched him talk, and talk, waving his hands around, pausing here and there to eat. Zayn couldn't stop himself from getting distracted by how long Harry's fingers were, and how his lips moved when he spoke, or the fact that he kept sticking his tongue out every time he took a bite from his sandwich. 

Which is why before he knew it, dinner was over, and Harry was ringing the rest of the guys, arranging for them to meet at a pub nearby. 

Apparently, Harry never told any of them what had happened, because if he had, Zayn was certain Louis would be having the time of his life taking a piss out of Zayn. Instead, they just sat around, drank drink after drink, and there might have been a little bit of more staring at Harry involved. It's a good thing that the pub was badly lit, and that all of them were a bit tipsy, so no one seemed to notice, or care. 

Then they were all piling up inside their cabs, and it was probably liquid courage, but Zayn decided he just had to say something while he could, so he stopped Harry before he could get away, holding on to his arm. Harry looked up at him, confused, but sort of smiling because he was always sort of smiling when he was drunk.

"I just wanted to, um, like, say thank you again, for the other day," Zayn said. Harry furrowed his brows for a second, like he didn't know what Zayn was talking about, then,

"Oh! Zayn, I told you, don't worry about it. All forgotten," he smiled, giving Zayn's arm a squeeze.

"Yeah, well..." Zayn shrugged for a bit, then he gave Harry what he hoped it would be one of his best smirks, "It was a pretty good kiss, though."

Harry's gaze got a bit heavier at that, going from Zayn's eyes, to his lips, "It was," he said, and chewed on his bottom lip, eyes still focused on Zayn's mouth.  _Win_.

"Thought you forgot about it," Zayn teased, and watched as Harry's eyes met his own again, and a matching smirk appeared on his face, his left dimple popping. He didn't say anything, but he didn't need to, the way he was looking at Zayn was more than enough. It was heated, almost predatory-like, making Zayn's skin crawl in the best way possible.  _ **There** 's the alpha in him_, Zayn thought, delighted for the first time ever to get that look directed at him.

Then Louis was yelling "Get in, or we're leaving without you, Harold!", and the moment was broken. Well, Harry was still looking at Zayn like he could pounce at any second, but they were reminded that there were other people around.

Harry let his lip slip from under his teeth, and grinned before leaning in, and kissing Zayn's cheek, lingering a bit longer than usual, "'Night, Zayn," he said, and got into the car. 

Well, it wasn't much, but it was a start.

 

The next day, Zayn decides he needs a plan. Well, not really a plan, but he needs help, because he can't just get drunk every time he's going to try and make a move. So he decides to pay Liam a visit, and ask him stuff (yes,  _stuff_ , because Zayn doesn't know yet what he's going to ask).

Liam seems surprised when Zayn shows up, but lets him in regardless, giving him a pat on the back.

"Louis isn't here," he says, closing the door behind them, and makes his way back into the living room.

Zayn nods, and follows him, "Oh, no, I know. I wanted to talk to you, actually." 

Liam looks at him with slightly raised brows, but sits down, and motions for Zayn to join him, "So. What can I do for you?"

Zayn runs a hand through his hair as he thinks about how to get to the point, scratches the back of his neck.

"Uh. How long have you known Harry, Liam?"

Liam still looks confused, and Zayn is starting to regret saying anything at all, but he waits for Liam to answer.

"Since... I don't know, since school, I guess? We're from the same town and all. Lost touch during uni, but then we started working at the same office," he shrugs. Zayn nods, chews on his bottom lip.

"And uhm. Throughout all this time...Did he like, date a lot of people?"

"I don't--what are you trying to ask, Zayn?" he asks, shifting in his seat a bit so he's facing Zayn properly, looking a bit concerned, now. 

Zayn lets out a frustrated sigh, "I don't know! I just-I realized I'm really into him, and I don't know what to do to get him to like me, I don't know!"

"Oh Zayn," Liam says, with a small smile, "Why don't you just tell him?" he says, like it's that easy. 

"I can't just tell him!"

"Why not?"

"Because he might not like me back? Because it might fuck everything up? Just--help me out, tell me what I should do, I want to... I don't know, woo him." Liam presses his lips together, like he's trying real hard not to laugh, and Zayn glares at him, so Liam sobers up a bit. 

"Look, Harry is not that hard to understand. And I'm sure he already likes you quite a bit. So maybe just, I don't know, ask him out? Or like, show him you want him. Show him he's different than the rest of us guys, then maybe he'll make a move so you won't have to?"

"But  _how_?" Zayn whines, because of course he thought about all of this before, he knows what he needs to do, he just doesn't know how to go about it. Liam rolls his eyes.

"Have you met Harry at all? You know what he likes. He likes getting people's attention, likes taking care of people, and cuddling and all that stuff. So maybe do all that, yeah? I don't know, you should've asked Louis if you were expecting a masterplan or something."

"No, please, don't mention this to Louis, he'll drive me crazy," Zayn says, and sighs, "Alright, I'll see what I can do. Uh. Thanks," Zayn says awkwardly, and spends the rest of his walk home thinking about what Liam said.

***

It's been two weeks since the Liam talk, and Zayn still hasn't done anything. Mostly because he's kind of scared to mess it up, but also because Liam couldn't keep his mouth shut, and now every time they're hanging out together, Louis and Liam keep watching him intently and Zayn gets freaked out. But right now, they're alone, just the two of them, and Zayn has no excuses, not really. Harry is laying on the floor on his stomach, going through some paperwork, while Zayn is reading on the couch, his cat curled up at his feet.

"Harry?"

"Hm?" Harry hums, but doesn't look up from what he's reading.

"Why aren't you bonded to anyone yet?" Zayn asks. It's not what he was aiming for, but still. It's a valid question. Harry is handsome, and wonderful, and he deserves someone. Preferably Zayn. But if he's not bonded because he doesn't want to bond to anyone, then Zayn can just start getting over him.

Harry looks up at that, puzzled.

"Uh. I don't know. Haven't found the right one yet, I guess? And I don't think I give off the right alpha vibes, or whatever. I don't know. Liam always says I'm a weird alpha, so maybe that's why I haven't attracted anyone yet. I don't know. Why aren't  _you_  bonded?" he asks, sitting up, curious look on his face. 

Zayn shrugs, "Dunno either. Same reasons, maybe? Not the usual omega, am I?" Zayn says with a dry laugh, but Harry doesn't join in, just shakes his head.

"You're lovely, Zayn," he says, and Zayn tries very hard not to blush. Also, what the fuck? Zayn's not the kind of guy who blushes. He needs to get this crush under control.

"Yeah, well. Never wanted to, anyway. Never like the idea of it, every alpha I went out with acted like they'd own me or something, I don't want that. Don't wanna be stuck to someone who thinks I'm someone to be bossed around."

Harry frowns, tilting his head to the side, "But that's not what it's about, is it? I mean, for me at least, it's supposed to be like--a support system? Like, we're opposites that were made to complete each other, right?" he says, gesturing like his hands are two puzzle pieces coming together, "Alphas and omegas are different, but we both need things from each other, and both are equally important. I mean, I think," he shrugs, setting his hands down on his lap and looks at them. He looks embarrassed, like Zayn might think what he said was stupid, and Zayn just--if he wasn't sure he was in love already, this would be it for him.

"You're a great alpha, Harry Styles," Zayn says with a soft smile, and the one Harry gives back definitely makes Zayn blush.

 

Okay, so now that Zayn knows Harry is available, he has decided to try out Liam's advice. He always sits next to Harry when they hang out, leans against him when Harry throws an arm around his shoulders, pets Harry's hair whenever he has the chance, and makes sure to answer all of his texts as quickly as he can, sometimes he even texts him first. Harry doesn't comment on Zayn's change of behavior, so Zayn doesn't even know if he has noticed, but he always seems more than happy to be on the receiving end of Zayn's attention. 

Zayn also tries to get them to hang out just the two of them more often, and Harry never says no. They meet up for coffee and talk with their legs tangled together under the table. They go to the movies, and Harry lets Zayn throw his legs over Harry's lap, and rest his head on Harry's chest. Harry sleeps at Zayn's place at least two times a week, and Zayn always wakes up with a mouthful of Harry's hair. 

And it's all good, Zayn is surprised at how easily he could get used to this. Actually, scratch that, Zayn  _is_  used to it already. Except it's been a month, and they haven't even kissed. And Zayn is pretty sure he's made himself more than available. Honestly, there's only so many times you can sit on someone's lap and nuzzle someone's neck before it starts to get too obvious. Why won't Harry like him?

 

"Why won't he like me?" Zayn whines over his vodka soda.

It's Friday night, and the guys decided to go out. Louis and Liam are looking at Zayn pitifully, while Harry and Niall are talking to the guy who was singing and playing his guitar a few minutes ago. Zayn's drunk, but he still wants to know.

"Zayn, mate, you should just tell him already. We've seen the way he looks at you, and it's just like you look at him," Louis says from across the table. Liam nods in agreement. 

"No, it's not," Zayn pouts (thought he'll deny that later), and drops his head over his arms on the table. He hears Louis and Liam chuckling. He loses track of time, so he doesn't know for how long he's had his head down, but he hears a loud whistle, and a few seconds later, Harry's there, then they're moving. How are they moving? And where to? Oh, they're in a cab. Harry's arm is around him, and it's nice and warm, and Harry smells good, like he always does, so Zayn lets himself enjoy it, rubs his face on Harry's chest and feels the vibrations of Harry's laugh running through him. 

They get to Zayn's place a few moments later, and Zayn lets Harry do most of the work of getting him upstairs, and into his apartment. Harry takes them to Zayn's room, and sits Zayn down before getting to his knees, carefully taking Zayn's boots off for him. Zayn just sits there, swaying in place lightly, and watches as Harry gets him some sweatpants and a shirt.

"Can you take off your pants for me, love?" Harry asks, suddenly standing right in front of Zayn. How did he move this fast?

"People usually buy me a drink before trying to get into my pants, Styles," Zayn says, and lays on his back so he can undo his buttons and push his pants down. Harry chuckles, shaking his head, and tugs at the end of Zayn's pants to help him.

"Think you've had enough to drink for today," he says, setting Zayn's jeans aside, and starts pulling his sweatpants on. "Why did you drink so much, anyway?" he asks, pulling Zayn into a sitting position again after the sweatpants are on.

"Because m'mad at you," Zayn slurs, and throws his hands up so Harry can take his shirt off.

"You're mad at me?" Harry asks, setting Zayn's shirt aside as well.

"Yeah," Zayn nods, and goes back to lying down once his new shirt is on.

"Why are you mad at me?" Harry asks, pulling back the duvet so Zayn can slip under it, then over him, tucking Zayn in. He sits on the edge of the bed as he waits for Zayn to answer him.

"Because you won't like me back," Zayn says. His eyelids are getting so heavy, and he's suddenly very very tired, but so comfortable. "I do all these things to get you to like me, and you still won't. I'm not even mad," Zayn yawns, "it just makes me--sad. Yeah, I'm sad."

Harry is quiet for so long, Zayn thinks he's not even there anymore.

"Harry?" he asks, and Harry hums to let Zayn know he's still there. "Will you stay?"

It takes a few more seconds, but Harry's "Of course," is the last thing Zayn hears before he falls asleep. 

 

When Zayn wakes up, there's a mild pounding on his head, and he is alone. He groans, laying on his back, and runs a hand through his hair. Zayn starts thinking about the night before, trying to remember what happened. He remembers the bar, and drinking more than he should. He remembers Harry taking him home, and getting him to bed, and--fuck.

Shit, shit, shit, he really fucked it up this time. And that probably explains why he's all alone, and not curled around Harry right now. He freaked Harry out, and he left, and fuck. Zayn groans again, pulls the covers over his head, and vows to never leave his apartment again.

When he wakes up for the second time, it's probably a couple of hours later, judging by how the sunlight coming from his window isn't as bright anymore. Zayn gets out of his bed, and goes to the bathroom. He takes a shower, brushes his teeth, and puts on the comfiest stay-at-home clothes he owns. He's thinking about eating all the ice cream he has in the fridge when he gets to the living room, then he freezes.

"Harry," he breathes, because--Harry is there. He's there, wearing Zayn's clothes, and reading one of Zayn's books, with Zayn's cat at his feet. What is going on? Harry looks up at him, and smiles sheepishly.

"Finally. Was starting to think you were dead in there," he closes the book, and shifts in his seat a bit.

"Wha-what are you doing here?" Zayn asks, still frozen in place.

Harry shrugs timidly, "You asked me to stay, so... And I figured we needed to talk."

Zayn wants to cry, he wants to turn back time, and stop himself from getting that third and fourth shot of tequila, wants to be anywhere but here right now. 

"We don't, really, I was drunk, and-"

"So you didn't mean it?" Harry cuts him off, frowning like he's confused, and maybe... hurt? And all of the sudden, Zayn doesn't regret his choices as much, suddenly regret is replaced with something like hope.

"No, I, I meant it," he says, taking a few tentative steps towards the couch, "Unless you think it's a bad thing, then I didn't," he tries to go for a joke, but Harry doesn't laugh.

"Why didn't you say anything before?" he asks, looking up at Zayn with those big green eyes of his. Zayn's first instinct is to come up with a lie, to try and make it less embarrassing, but well, Harry already knows the worst part, and he's still here, so how much worse can it get?

"I was scared, I guess. Of what you might say, of--I don't know, losing you. Didn't want to mess us up," Zayn shrugs, looking at the floor as he takes a seat on the couch. Harry is silent for just a few seconds, but it felt like forever until he finally spoke up.

"You were wrong, y'know?" Harry says, his voice low, almost a whisper, "I really fucking like you, actually," he keeps going, and Zayn looks up at him then. Harry is looking at him with a smile on his face that seems both shy and content. "And I noticed all the things you were doing, but then I kept thinking about that conversation we had, about you not wanting to like, settle down and stuff, so I forced myself not to think too much of it," he says with an apologetic shrug. 

"Oh, Harry," Zayn coos, and reaches for him, throws his arms around Harry's shoulders, as Harry's arms go around his middle. "I never wanted it before, until I met you," Zayn says with his face buried in Harry's neck, "I want all of it, now. Not, like, today, but, eventually. With you." Zayn feels Harry holding on to him tighter, and him nodding against his shoulder.

"I want it too," Harry says, pressing a light kiss to Zayn's neck.

 

Kissing Harry is amazing. They've only been kissing for about twenty minutes now, but Zayn already thinks it's amazing. So much better than the first time, now that his brain isn't clouded because of his heat, now that he can think straight and fully enjoy how plump his lips are, can listen to the breathy sounds he lets out whenever Zayn nips on his bottom lip.

Zayn pushes himself against Harry, climbs onto his lap and tangles his fingers in Harry's hair. Harry's hands find Zayn's waist, and Zayn marvels in how big they are against him, how he feels like they could go all the way around him, could hold Zayn down if he wanted to.

And Zayn wants him to, is the thing. He never did before, never liked feeling small, or frail, but he doesn't mind it with Harry. Because he knows Harry wouldn't take advantage, knows that Harry thinks Zayn would be his counterpart, someone to complete him. So no, he doesn't mind being smaller, or not as strong; doesn't mind the thought of submitting, because he trusts Harry with it, because Harry knows that if he's in charge, is only because Zayn is giving him that power.

Zayn tugs on Harry's hair, swallows down his moans, and Harry's hands move down Zayn's body, all the way to his ass, squeezing it in response. Zayn grinds down, head going dizzy when he feels Harry hard and big under him, and fuck, he wants it. Wants Harry over him, in him, all around him. He starts rolling his hips, and it doesn't take too long for Harry to start moving with him, canting his hips up as Zayn pushes down.

Harry pulls away, mouths at Zayn's jaw, bites it, keeps moving down until he's nosing Zayn's neck, surely breathing in Zayn's scent, licking where someday he'll leave his mark, hopefully. The thought that once sent Zayn running for the hills, now has him shivering, has him feeling wet and ready. Harry must feel it too, probably can smell it, Zayn's slick, and he groans against Zayn's neck, one hand going into Zayn's pants and between his ass cheeks to feel for himself.

He rubs two fingers over and around Zayn's rim, barely pushing in, and that's not enough, so Zayn pushes back to get him further in, needs more, now. Harry gets it, starts moving his fingers in and out, fucking Zayn with them, and even though it could be better (could be Harry's dick), it's still good, Zayn sends a silent  _thanks_  for Harry's big  _everything_  to whoever is out there listening.

Zayn reaches behind Harry, holds on to the back of the couch for leverage with one hand, and reaches under Harry's pants with the other, finally,  _finally_  curling his fingers around Harry's cock, after weeks of wondering what it'd feel like. It feels great, by the way, warm and heavy, and he's leaking as well, his head flushed and wet with want, Zayn's senses going on overdrive with Harry's scent, rich and heady.

They move together, Harry pushing up as Zayn bears down, and somewhere in the back of his mind, he thinks it'd be easy to just push Harry's hand away and sit down on his cock. Zayn would, probably, if he thought he could go a second without Harry in him, but since he doesn't, he stays where he is, fucking himself on Harry's fingers. He gets a little useless once Harry finds his prostate and starts working it relentlessly, so Zayn just throws his arms around Harry's shoulders when he gently tugs Zayn's hand away from his cock.

Harry curls a big hand around them both, getting them off together, and Zayn can't stop his moans, can't keep them down any longer, starts babbling things that don't even make sense to himself. Harry swallows his words between kisses, sometimes whispers things back, things Zayn doesn't really hear, but he eats them up either way, goes crazier with it. Then he feels Harry's knot growing against him, and he's done for, comes so hard he shakes with it as he cries out Harry's name.

Harry follows him soon after, kissing Zayn hungrily as he comes, one hand curled around the base to keep a steady pressure on his knot, the other working himself slowly, trembling softly with the aftershocks of his orgasm. It's the hottest thing Zayn's ever seen, come dripping down Harry's long, beautiful fingers, how flushed Harry's chest and cheeks are, Harry's lips bitten red.

Zayn kisses him again, because he likes the way his beard makes Harry's skin get red and raw, a way to mark him up, claim Harry as his as well, even if only for a few hours. When he pulls away, Harry smiles at him, and gives him a sweet peck on the lips. Zayn smiles back, presses a kiss to Harry's cheek, another just under his ear, then he whispers as sweetly as he can "Next time, I that in me," just so he can hear Harry groan, and laugh against his neck.

***

The next time they meet with guys, it's three days later, and they're at Harry's apartment. They haven't told them yet about the two of them being a pair because they thought it'd be fun to see the look on their faces when they saw them. Zayn comes in last, because he always does, knocks on the door, and smiles when Harry answers it with a "About time you showed up!" and a smile on his face.

The guys are all chatting animatedly as Zayn leans in, arms around Harry's middle, and kisses him. Harry kisses him back, trying to hold back his laughter as the guys' voices die down in surprise, until they can't any longer, and start laughing into each other's mouths. Then they look at their friends, who are just staring back, blinking, until Niall finally breaks the silence, slapping a hand over his thigh and saying "Fuckin' finally!" That seems to wake everybody up, Liam and Louis joining in on the cheers, and getting to their feet to hug Harry and Zayn.

"So glad you got your head out of your ass, man!" Louis says, giving Zayn a few pats on the back, then pointing at Harry, "If you hurt him, I'll fuck you up," he promises.

Harry throws his hands up in surrender, "I'll take good care of him, promise."

"Good," Louis nods, and then they settle down in the living room, Louis, Liam and Niall bombarding them with questions about how everything went down. Harry starts telling the story, but Louis soon gets impatient with Harry's rambling, so Zayn finishes up for him. After all of the excitement dies down, they order pizza, and fight over which movie they're watching until Harry says it's Zayn's choice because biased and a sap like that.

Zayn just smiles victoriously, and curls himself on Harry's lap as they start watching The Avengers, sometimes stealing kisses here and there. He's so happy, surrounded by people he loves, and Harry's content scent draped all around him like a warm blanket. 

Harry falls asleep thirty minutes into the movie, and usually Zayn would give him shit for it, but he looks so comfortable that Zayn just nuzzles his neck, and fifteen minutes later, he's asleep as well. When he wakes up, the TV is off, so are the lights, and everyone's gone. Harry mumbles in his sleep as Zayn moves on his lap, and tightens his arms around Zayn, like he's afraid Zayn is going to go away.

"Harry," Zayn whispers, moving his fingers through Harry's hair. Harry mumbles again. "C'mon, everyone's gone, let's go to bed," he says, a little bit louder now, but still in a hushed tone.

"Wha?"

"We fell asleep on the couch."

"Ah, shit. My back's gonna kill me tomorrow..." he grunts, and just like that, he gets to his feet with Zayn in his arms, reminding Zayn of how strong he is.

"Don't fucking drop me," Zayn says, arms around Harry's shoulders, holding on for dear life.

"I won't," Harry chuckles sleepily. Miraculously, they get to Harry's bedroom with no accidents whatsoever. Zayn changes into some of Harry's clothes, while Harry just strips to his underwear and slips under the blankets. Zayn joins him right after, and Harry moves closer instantly, wraps his arms around Zayn again, and they're out in a matter of seconds.

When Zayn wakes up again, it's because they didn't close the curtains the night before and sunlight is streaming through the window. He pulls the pillow over his head, just as he listens to Harry's chuckle.

"Oh, good, you're up," Harry says, climbing in bed, and taking the pillow away from Zayn's head, "'Morning," he grins down at Zayn, and kisses him sweetly on the lips.

"You shouldn't be this happy this early in the morning," Zayn grumbles, and Harry laughs.

"And you should brush your teeth," he teases.

Zayn rolls his eyes, "You're the worst, I'm going back to sleep," he says, and turns his back to Harry, pulling the blanket up to his chin. Harry laughs again, and cuddles Zayn.

"Nooo, c'mon," he whines, noses at the back of Zayn's neck.

Zayn shakes his head, and presses his face to the pillow to hide his smile as Harry starts kissing his neck, "Uh-huh, you've wounded me. M'only getting up for breakfast," he says, even though he's just a few kisses away from turning back around.

"Urgh, fine, what d'you want to eat?" Harry asks, letting go of Zayn to get out of bed. Zayn laughs, because he didn't really mean it, and Harry truly is something else. He turns around, and grabs Harry's wrist, pulling him back against him.

"I was just kidding," he says, throwing an arm around Harry's middle, and resting his head on Harry's chest. "What d'you wanna do today?"

Harry looks down at him, runs his fingers through his hair, "Hmm..." Harry pouts as he thinks, and Zayn wants to nibble on his lip, "maybe we can stay in bed some more, then we could go out for lunch, and theeen... A movie?" he smiles. Zayn smiles back. 

"Sounds perfect."

***

They've been dating for four months now, and Zayn's pretty sure he's ready. He's ready to bond to Harry. He's already weighed the pros and cons, but honestly, the only con in there is that they haven't been together for too long, and that seems so unimportant when Zayn thinks about everything else. He  _knows_  Harry. Knows him well, knows his thoughts on important things, knows his favorite food, favorite color, favorite song; knows how he looks like when he wakes up, and how his mind comes up with the weirdest questions right before he falls asleep; and lastly, he knows Harry's body as well as his own by now.

The past few months have been nothing short than amazing, so much better than Zayn could ever expect to get out of a relationship, and quite enlightening, too. 

For one, Zayn found out that for someone as afraid of feeling trapped by someone else as he is, Zayn's really jealous. It's ridiculous, and they've fought about it more than once, Zayn flipping out every time Harry smiles too much at someone when they're out, or when he comes home smelling like someone else. It's just that--okay, there isn't really a way to explain it, Zayn get a bit irrational when it comes to Harry. 

He's never wanted or loved (yes, loved), anyone like this before, and he goes a little bit crazy at the thought of losing Harry. But thankfully, Harry understands, and makes a point of reminding Zayn of who Harry really wants to be with, and that results in hours in bed, kissing, and touching, and fucking, until the only thing Zayn smells is their scents mixed together.

And on that note, another thing Zayn's learned is that sex with Harry is fucking mind blowing. Like, eye rolling, toe curling, I-can't-feel-my-fingertips-anymore amazing sex. Maybe it's because they knew each other so well and were already so in sync by the time they did it, or maybe Harry's just that good, Zayn doesn't know or cares, all he knows is that it's the best he's ever had. He doesn't think he'll ever get tired of exploring Harry's body with his lips, teeth, and tongue, or the feel of Harry's fingers over his body, or how Harry's body feels soft and sturdy at the same time when Zayn grabs at him. 

He'll never get tired of the sounds he's learned to pull from Harry's beautiful, skilled mouth, will never get tired of Harry's ragged breaths on the back of his neck, of how his muscles shift under Zayn's palms as Zayn rides him, or how beautiful he looks as he comes, his lips so red and plump, cheeks and chest flushed, his eyes all glossy and his hair wild and messy. 

But more importantly, he's realized he'll never get tired of Harry's voice. Every timbre of it, Zayn loves it. From how raspy it sounds when Harry wakes up, to how it goes to barely above a whisper when Harry's about to fall asleep. He loves how Harry's reduced to a few words when he's about to come, reduced to Zayn's name, and  _fuck_ ,  _so good_ ,  _oh shit_ , and Zayn's favorite,  _god, I fucking love you_. 

And, now, as he looks at Harry's face while he's still out from their afternoon cuddling session, Zayn knows that yes, he's ready. 

He moves as gently as he can, moves down Harry's body underneath the blanket, and settles between his legs. He kisses the insides of Harry's thighs, hands moving up and fingers gently pulling Harry's sweatpants down just enough to get his cock out. Zayn licks his lips, then he licks a long stripe from Harry's base to the tip of his cock, swirling his tongue around it, then takes it into his mouth.

He sucks soft and slowly, bobs his head up and down, feels Harry filling up in his mouth as he stirs in his sleep. It doesn't take longer than five minutes for Zayn to feel Harry's hands in his hair, pulling Zayn off his cock and back up for a kiss. Harry smiles into it, his eyes sleepy and soft, but with a glint of amusement.

"Well, that's one hell of a way to wake up," he says, moving his hands down Zayn's body, fingertips tracing the nobs of Zayn's spine. Zayn smirks, kisses him on the lips once more, then kisses Harry's cheek, and his neck.

"I love you," he tells Harry, fingers curling around Harry's cock, starts tugging him off slowly.

Harry gasps, clutching Zayn's back, but he grins, "I love you too," he says, hands moving to squeeze Zayn's ass cheeks, pressing their hips together.

"Want you to do it," Zayn says against Harry's neck, rolls his hips against him, "want us to bond, want you to mark me up," he says, pulls Harry's earlobe with his teeth. Harry groans, fingers tightening on Zayn's ass.

"Don't say that if you don't really mean it," he hisses, holding Zayn tighter against him.

"I mean it, I want it," Zayn says, and makes his way down Harry's body again, taking his sweatpants down all the way, looking into his eyes, "You gonna do it, Haz? Gonna make me yours?" he asks, and takes his pants off as well, leaving them both naked. Harry looks at him, eyes going dark, and it makes Zayn's skin prickle all over, his body thrumming with anticipation as he feels Harry's scent coming off of him in thick waves, feels the intensity of Harry's want as if it were his own, and fuck, might as well be, he wants it so much.

Then Harry is all but growling, and he moves faster than Zayn's ever seen him move, suddenly on top of Zayn, Harry's mouth hot and wet on his. Zayn kisses him back, claws at Harry's back, and spreads his thighs for him, moaning as Harry moves his hips, rubs their cocks together. 

Harry is panting when he pulls away to look at Zayn, "You really want this, Zayn? We don't have to do this yet, d'you  _really_  want it?" he asks one last time, just to make sure.

"Yes, I  _really_  want this, Harry," Zayn answers, impatient already. Harry stares at him for a few seconds, like he's afraid Zayn will change his mind, but Zayn just stares right back, he wants this, wants  _them_. Harry must finally believe it, because he grabs Zayn by the hips, and flips him over, then his body is against Zayn's again, nose at the back of Zayn's neck. Zayn loves it when Harry gets like this, when he tosses Zayn around, manhandles him in a way that only Harry was allowed to, ever. Harry moves his hips down and forward, pressing his cock between Zayn's ass cheeks, keeps moving, down and forward, back, down and forward. 

Zayn feels himself getting slicker by the second, his cock is trapped between himself and the mattress, and Harry's thrusts push him further up the bed little by little. It's so good, Zayn thinks he could come from just this, Harry's scent, his body over Zayn's, and Harry's tip catching his rim every once in a while. Then, as quickly as Harry came over him, he's gone, and Zayn would be embarrassed by how needy he sounds when he whines, but he's already past the point of caring.

Harry just chuckles, and moves his hands up Zayn's thighs, all the way to his ass, fingers digging into his flesh, "Gonna take such good care of you, babe," he says, leans down and sucks a mark into one of his ass cheeks. Zayn is well on his way to blissed out by now, from Harry's touch, and Harry's voice, and Harry's words, his whole body screaming  _yes_  as he pushes his ass up in the air and into Harry's hands. Harry spreads Zayn's cheeks apart, and then Zayn feels it, the wet, warm touch of his tongue, and Harry moans at Zayn's taste, broad tongue over Zayn's rim.

Harry is thorough, always is, selfless, gets off on getting Zayn off first, moans and hums every time Zayn cries out into the mattress. And Zayn is pliant, lets Harry do whatever he wants with him, trusts Harry will get him there, he always does. It doesn't take too long for Zayn to start pushing back, Harry fucking him with his tongue, opening him up until Zayn is begging for his cock, because Zayn always does, too.

He moves back up Zayn's body then, kissing and biting every inch of skin he can find, before he gets up on his knees, and pulls Zayn with him, even if Zayn can't make himself get on his hands as well, just props himself up on his elbows, face tucked into his arm.

"You ready, babe?" Harry asks, on hand on Zayn's hip, the other holding himself in place, rubbing the tip of his cock over Zayn's rim, barely dipping in.

"Yeah, yeah, m'ready, fuck me, come on," Zayn urges. Harry doesn't make him wait, knows how Zayn gets when it's intense like this, and pushes in, all the way in one swift motion that has Zayn clawing at the sheets. The first few thrusts are slow, as he lets Zayn get used to it, he knows he's big, and he's not as easy to take when Zayn's not as numb and wet like he is when he's in heat. But he feels it when Zayn starts pushing back, and gets a good rhythm going, still not as fast as he could be, but hard, and  _deep_.

Deep, so deep, Zayn feels Harry hitting all the right spots, feels every inch of him, and even more when Harry sits back on his heels, and pulls Zayn up by the hair, one arm going around Zayn's middle, keeping their bodies flushed together, and makes Zayn slid further down on his cock, his tip grazing Zayn's prostate with every move. Zayn starts rolling his hips, starts bouncing, can't keep track of which way is up or down anymore. 

Harry wraps a hand around Zayn's cock just as his knot starts to expand, and yes,  _yes_ , that's good, so good, Zayn starts bouncing even more enthusiastically, and that get Harry cursing, one of his big hands coming up to curl over Zayn's throat. It's not constricting or anything, is just enough to keep Zayn close, to feel his heartbeat.

"This is it, m'gonna do it, you ready?" Harry pants against Zayn's ear, hips stuttering as his orgasm approaches, "You sure?" he asks, hand moving faster over Zayn's cock.

"Yes, just fucking do it,  _please_ ," Zayn groans, but barely has time to finish his sentence before he feels Harry's teeth sinking into that spot where his neck meets his shoulder, and Zayn is pretty sure he fucking blacks out for a second, his back arching, Harry's knot locking them together, and they're both coming, their groans mixing in the air.

It's the most intense thing Zayn's ever felt, like he feels both of his and Harry's pleasure spiraling within him, coursing through his body, his entire self breaking into a million pieces and coming together again along with Harry's parts, finally making him whole. He feels everything, from the ends of his hair to the tip of his toes, everything on fire, like he's been jolted awake, like he's been electrocuted, and he's gasping, sagging back against Harry's body as he slowly,  _so_  slowly, comes back to himself.

Somehow Harry manages to get them to lie down on their sides, while Zayn focuses on his breathing, on trying to be coherent again. He feels Harry kissing his neck, licking over the newly made wound, as he pulses inside of Zayn, still coming, one arm wrapped around Zayn's middle. Zayn blinks, everything feeling so intense, he's more in tune with Harry than ever, can feel his happiness, love, protectiveness and adoration so strongly, it's almost overwhelming in the best way possible.

Zayn feels like he should say something, should tell Harry how happy he is, or how much he loves him, but just as he is about to say it, he feels Harry smiling against his neck, feels him breathing in, before pressing a kiss to the skin there. "I can feel it," Harry whispers, like maybe he's explaining why he's smiling, or maybe he just wants Zayn to know he doesn't need to say anything yet because Harry already knows what he's going to say.

Zayn smiles, blinking slowly, his eyelids getting heavier and heavier. He places a hand on top of Harry's, and intertwines their fingers. "I love you," he says anyway, and manages to stay awake long enough to hear Harry saying the same back to him. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so, i've read that they usually need the omega to be in heat for the bond to stick, but it kinda freaks me out to have such an important decision being made while they're barely coherent like they get while in heat, so i changed it a little bit. 
> 
> let me know what you thought about it, i'm hella insecure about this work, being the first time i tap into the omegaverse :(


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am SO sorry for taking this long to update. My life has been SO crazy lately, but I think I got it all under control now. enjoy!

Zayn wakes up slowly, and with a smile on his face. Harry is singing in the bathroom as he showers, some Whitney Houston song, and Zayn just laughs because he' in love with a dork. He closes his eyes, and sighs happily. It's weird, how he feels that pull, like there's a rope tied around his waist that connects him to Harry. He feels it, the need to be close to him, but also like Harry is right there, in his head, his heart, feels how happy Harry is even if he's not even in the same room.

He stretches, lazy and cat-like, before getting up, and walking to the bathroom. Zayn looks at himself in the mirror, takes in his tousled hair, love bites on his chest, and finally, Harry's mark on his neck. He presses on it, and winces at the light pain, but smiles all the same. It's real, it happened, that's it. He'll never be the same again, there's no turning back. 

The thought scares him a bit, but not in the way that makes him regret it, scares him in a way that gets him excited, like when you're riding a rollercoaster and there's that second, the one right before the drop, when you know you're going to fall, and it's going to be fast, and there's no stopping it, no control over it. Zayn loves it. Just as he starts brushing his teeth, Harry stops singing, and pulls the shower curtain, beaming at Zayn.

"Morning!" he chirps, eyes bright, wet hair falling around his face. He's so beautiful, Zayn is so fucked.

"Morning," Zayn says around his toothbrush, smiling back. They just stare at each other for a few seconds, and it's ridiculous, the two of them with dumb smiles on their faces, Harry looking like a wet dog, Zayn with a mouthful of toothpaste. He honestly feels bad for getting annoyed at Louis way back then, when he'd bonded to Liam, because now he knows what it's like.

Then Harry is laughing, shaking the wet hair out of his face, "I'm almost done, but you could join me anyway," he says, still smiling. So Zayn does, joins Harry in the shower after rinsing his mouth. Harry washes Zayn's hair, and presses kisses to his skin as he lathers Zayn up. Zayn just lets him, and keeps touching Harry whenever he can, wherever he can. They dry each other off, but there's only so much touching they can take, before they start to get restless and needy.

Somehow they're back in bed, Harry on his back, and Zayn straddling his hips as they kiss, Zayn's hands buried in Harry's wet hair, Harry clawing at his back. They're hard and panting, and Harry pulls away, shaking his head.

"I shouldn't have started this, need to go to work," he pants, even though he still doesn't stop touching Zayn, hands squeezing his waist, lips moving over Zayn's neck as he speaks. 

Zayn shakes his head, bites at Harry's chest, "There's no fucking way you're leaving right now," he says, swirling his tongue around Harry's nipple just to make him gasp, "Call in sick, call Liam, they'll understand," Zayn says, and grinds his hips down for good measure. Harry's hands fly to his hips to stop him, and he groans.

"Zayn," he whines, and Zayn does it again, shows him how wet he is already. It's a low blow, he knows, but he'll do what he needs to get Harry to stay.

"Call him," Zayn insists, tugging Harry's nipple between his teeth, "C'mon babe, s'like--like our honeymoon or summat, c'mon." Harry doesn't say anything, too busy pushing his hips up, and too lost in what Zayn's doing, before he mutters a  _fuck it_ , and reaches for his phone. Zayn smiles victoriously, and sits up, stops what he's doing to give Harry a moment of clarity. 

Harry doesn't even call anyone, just sends Liam a text, then one for his boss, before tossing his phone away. Zayn would ask him what he sent, but Harry is suddenly sitting up, burying his fingers in Zayn's hair, and pulling him down for a kiss, a bruising one that steals Zayn's breath away. Zayn melts into it, clings to Harry and gives back as good as he gets, before pushing Harry away, making him lay down again.

Harry looks up at him, surprised, until his eyes get darker, hungrier, and he relaxes against the mattress, lifting his hands to let them rest next to his head, giving Zayn free reign over his body. Zayn smirks, moves his hands up Harry's body, circles Harry's nipples with the pads of his thumbs. Harry closes his eyes, and tilts his head back, breathing in deeply, but his breath gets caught in his throat when Zayn suddenly pinches his nipples. He looks up at Zayn again, and smirks, chews on his bottom lip.

Zayn braces himself with a hand on Harry's chest, and reaches behind himself, taking hold of Harry's cock. He aligns himself, and starts sinking down, slowly, the two of them groaning. Zayn is still fairly open from the night before, but it still burns, the stretch, it always does, and Zayn revels in it. He keeps going until he's fully seated, letting out a breath he didn't know he was holding in. 

When Zayn looks down, Harry's got his eyes closed, lips parted, his hands clutching his pillow tightly, and Zayn feels so... powerful. He's the one who did that, the only one who'll ever do that from now on, the only one to get Harry this blissed out. Zayn gets drunk with it, can't wait to take Harry higher, so he braces himself on Harry's chest, lifts himself up, and drops back down. Harry groans, bites on his lip so hard Zayn's surprised it didn't break the skin yet.

Zayn rolls his hips, grinds down in circles, whimpering when the tip of Harry's cock hits him  _just_  right. "Look at me," he tells Harry, surprised at how breathless he sounds already. Harry looks at him, his lip slipping from under his teeth, and he moans at the sight, shakes his head like he can't believe it.

"You're so fucking fit,  _jesus_ ," he gasps, and keens when Zayn clenches around him as a reward, "How did I get so fucking lucky?" Zayn chuckles, still out of breath, and shakes his head.

"I'm the lucky one, from where I'm sitting," Zayn says, and leans in for a brief kiss, lifting his hips and sinking down harshly, moaning into Harry's lips. He moves his hands up Harry's body, all the way to his hands, and locks their fingers together, keeping Harry's hands pressed against the bed, and using it for leverage as he starts moving faster. Zayn keeps their bodies close together as he rides Harry, their faces only inches apart, Harry's tongue sometimes darting out to lick at Zayn's lips with a smirk that drives Zayn crazy, makes him bounce faster, harder, the sounds of their skin slapping against each other and Harry's cock moving in and out so obscene in the otherwise quiet room.

"Lean back, babe, please, wanna see," Harry moans, and Zayn smirks. He lets go of Harry's hands, and leans back, places his hands or Harry's thighs, and keeps bouncing. Zayn doesn't need to look down to know Harry's eyes are trained on where their bodies meet, watching himself disappear over and over inside of Zayn.

Zayn's getting close to coming, he knows, his cock slapping wetly against his stomach, precome leaking steadily, and Harry knows too, shakes his head, and "Not yet," he says, and suddenly Zayn's on his back, Harry between his thighs. Zayn nearly cries out, he was so close. But Harry just smiles at him, unmoving, and leans down for a kiss. It's slow, and deep, and intense, and Zayn gets lost in it for a moment, barely feels Harry hooking his arms under the back of his knees, and pushing his legs up, but then he slides in deeper, and fuck, Zayn's going to pass out. He tilts his head back, eyes rolling into his skull, and Harry starts, moving.

It's slow, the way he moves, pulling almost all the way out, before sliding back in, all the way in, deep, so deep, this steady rhythm, back and forth, back and forth, like waves crashing on the shore, a constant pressure, Zayn feeling every fucking inch of him, their foreheads pressed together. He keeps his hands in Harry's hair, holds it back so he can look into his green, green eyes, even though it's getting harder and harder to keep his eyes open.

Harry bites on Zayn's lower lip, whines low in the back of his throat as his knot starts to expand, and he's gasping, his cheeks rosy and skin glistening with sweat. "Oh, fuck, fuck," he breathes, "always so fucking good, babe, so good." Zayn nods, pulls on Harry's hair, "Gonna come," Harry says, eyes slipping shut tightly, and Zayn nods again, hungry for it.

"C'mon, Haz, come for me, c'mon," he clenches on purpose, he's so close too, so close, just needs Harry's knot, and that'll be it, won't even need a hand on himself. 

"You want it?" Harry gasps, hips snapping faster now, moving Zayn up the bed with it.

"Need it, give it to me, give it to me," Zayn pleads, sweating, dizzy with want.

Harry grunts, snaps his hips hard once, twice, "Take it, fucking take it," Harry groans, and that's it, his knot popping past Zayn's rim as he comes. Zayn hisses out a  _yes_ , back arching, and his whole body shaking as he comes with him, spilling all over himself, whining at how good it feels.

Harry slowly lowers Zayn's legs, lets them fall around his waist as they come down, shuddering as he keeps coming deep inside of Zayn. He sucks over the mark on Zayn's neck, kisses it, and his body starts relaxing. He nuzzles Zayn's neck, Zayn feels him smiling against his skin. "You smell so fucking good right now," Harry says, and Zayn laughs breathlessly.

"You too. Like us," he says, kissing Harry's jaw, "Like home."

***

"You smell weird," is the first thing Niall tells Harry when they all meet each other for lunch later that week. Harry laughs, while Zayn frowns, swatting Niall away.

"Stop sniffing my mate, he smells perfect," he says, because apparently, bonding did nothing to subside Zayn's jealousy. Niall doesn't take it to heart, just raises his hands in surrender, laughing.

"I just gotta say, I never thought I'd see you like this, Malik," Louis says, amused, as Harry and Zayn pull their chairs out and sit down, "What did you do to him, Harold?"

Harry shrugs, and throws an arm around Zayn's shoulder, "Just got lucky, I guess," he grins.

"No way, you should've seen Zayn in college. Biggest aversion to commitment ever," Louis keeps going, and Niall nods in agreement. Zayn--well, he can't deny it, he really did use to hate it. Next to Louis, Liam laughs.

"Well, you should've seen Hazza in school, then. I swear to god, we all used to think he was going to be an omega before he presented," Liam says. Zayn looks at Harry, surprised because he's having a hard time imagining how in the world would anyone think Harry was an omega, with how tall and strong he is. Harry just shrugs again.

"M'a late bloomer, I guess."

"Definitely," Liam chuckles, "all big green eyes, crazy curls and a chubby face. Oh! You should text Anne and ask for a picture!"

Harry groans, "No one wants to see that, Liam."

"Uh, excuse me, speak for yourself, I want to see young, omega Harry," Zayn says as Niall enthusiastically, "Yeah, yeah, me too!" he says. Harry glares at Liam like he's been betrayed, but takes his phone out anyway, and texts his mother. They order their food while they eat, and just as they're getting their drinks, Harry's phone lights up with Anne's answer. Harry opens up the picture, and sets his phone down on the table, grinning. The picture shows Harry indeed with a chubby face, and crazy curls, plush lips, and dimples on display. But Harry is not alone, Liam is sitting beside him, an arm around Harry's shoulder. He's got the same puppy eyes, but he looks a lot younger, and he's got so much hair,  _straight_  hair.

"Aaw, babe, you had Bieber hair!" Louis coos, taking the phone away to get a closer look, and Liam gapes at Harry.

"Traitor!" he says, but Harry couldn't care less.

"Karma, buddy," Harry shrugs. The phone's passed around the table, as Louis peppers Liam's face with kisses and begs him to please,  _pleeease_  grow his hair out again just so he can see what it looks like. Niall starts laughing at them when he sees the picture, so hard his face gets all red. Then it's Zayn's turn to see, and yes, Harry was the cutest thing ever. Like, really fucking cute, and yes, Zayn can see now what Liam was talking about.

"You were the most adorable thing I've ever seen," Zayn says, looking at Harry.

Harry laughs, "What, m'not adorable anymore?"

"Nah, not anymore," Zayn teases, but can't stop himself from leaning in and giving Harry a quick peck on the lips. "M'gonna need to see more of those, though," he says, handing the phone back to Harry.

"M'sure my mom would be more than glad to go through all of our family photos with you," Harry says, grinning.

"Guess we're gonna have to pay her a visit, then," he tells Harry and pecks him on the lips because Harry is beaming and he deserves it. 

"Ok, I won't believe that anything less than witchcraft is involved here. Zayn willingly meeting the parents? Sorcery!" Louis exclaims, making all of them laugh.

***

They drive down to Harry's parents house on a Saturday, and the ride is smooth, or at least Harry tries to make it smooth. He put together a nice playlist, and keeps reaching for Zayn's hand, squeezing it reassuringly. The worst part is Zayn can't even try to lie and say he's okay, because Harry can probably feel how nervous he is, but every time Harry touches him, he actually feels a little better, so Zayn leans even more against him. 

"You ready, love?" Harry asks when they get there, parking the car. Zayn takes a deep breath, but ends up shaking his head instead of nodding. Harry chuckles, and takes Zayn's face in his hands, "She's gonna love you, alright? Robin too, it's going to be fine, I promise." Zayn looks at him, looks deep into his eyes, and nods. He can do this. He's Zayn fucking Malik, and he can do this.

He's going to charm everyone, he's sure. 

 

And he does. Of course it doesn't hurt that Anne and Robin are lovely, but anyway. Zayn is polite, helps Anne set up the table for lunch, and she congratulates him on graduating from college, when she knows how low that rate of omegas that make through are. Anne is an omega herself, and she didn't graduate. Zayn tells her it's not too late, and she blushes, shaking her head, but thanks him, anyway. 

Then it's time for Harry's kid pictures and they sit side by side on the couch, Anne showing Zayn pictures, and telling him the stories behind them, Harry sometimes pitching in with a few details. Seeing how Harry was brought up makes it easier for Zayn to understand why Harry is the way he is. Anne is gentle, comprehensive, and caring, and from what Zayn's seen, she's allowed Harry to do pretty much whatever he felt like doing, if the pictures of Harry running around naked or barefoot are any indication. 

A few hours later, Gemma comes around too, and she's the typical older sister, picking on Harry, and telling Zayn embarrassing stories from his childhood. They tell Zayn more about how even they thought Harry would turn out to be an omega, because of his personality traits, and delicate facial features. It makes it even more clear for Zayn why Harry understands and respects him so much, knowing he was probably treated liked an omega growing up, and knew exactly what Zayn went through as well. It honestly makes Zayn love him even more. 

Harry cooks dinner for them, and Zayn helps, while Anne watches over them. Zayn tells her about his mom's food, describes different dishes for her, and Anne makes him promise he'll giver her his mother's number so they can trade recipes. Gemma is in charge of doing the dishes, and she does, but not without complaining. Harry and Zayn decide to go to bed early, the two of them tired from the drive there, so they get washed up, and settle in Harry's old room. His bed isn't that big, but they're used to curling around each other to fall asleep, so it's not that bad.

Harry drapes himself around Zayn, his chest to Zayn's back, an arm around his middle.

"So? Wasn't that bad, was it?" he asks, pressing kisses to the back of Zayn's neck. Zayn smiles, and shakes his head.

"It's been fun," Zayn says, drawing circles over Harry's hand with his fingertips.

"M'gonna show you around tomorrow. The old ladies I used to work with are gonna love you," he chuckles.

"Whatever you say," Zayn says, bringing Harry's hand to his lips, kissing it once, before holding it against himself again. "G'night, love."

"Night, babe," Harry whispers, and Zayn lets himself drift off to sleep. 

It's early when Zayn wakes up, too early, the sun is barely up, and for a few seconds, he doesn't understand why he's awake. Then his brain starts registering how Harry is nipping on his, and the very insistent pressure of his cock against Zayn's ass. He smiles, but shakes his head.

"It's too early for this," he mumbles, and he can feel Harry's smile against his shoulder.

"C'mon, wanna fuck you in my old bed," he whispers, starts moving his hand down Zayn's stomach.

"You can do that later," Zayn whines, but mostly because of how his traitorous body is beginning to react to Harry's advances.

"Everyone s'gonna be up, later, gotta do it now." Harry keeps moving his hand down, starts rubbing Zayn's cock through his boxers. "We can do it like this, nice and slow, yeah?" he whispers, and yeah, that actually sounds really nice. And Zayn's cock is already fucking hard, because it has no respect for Zayn's sleep, so. "Gotta keep quiet, though," Harry tugs on Zayn's earlobe with his teeth, moves his hand under Zayn's boxers, over his hip, and down, giving Zayn's ass a squeeze, before moving further down to feel where he's starting to get slick. "Gotta keep quiet, or everyone's gonna hear," he pushes one finger in, and Zayn needs to turn his face and press it into the pillow to muffle a moan. "Can we, babe? Can we do it, like this?" he asks, and starts moving his finger in and out, slowly.

Zayn comes with one of Harry's hands around his cock, and the other over his mouth to muffle his moans.

 

They nap for a little bit after, Harry still inside him by the time Zayn drifts off, and when he wakes up again, is by the sounds of Gemma knocking on Harry's door. They shower before going down for breakfast, otherwise anyone with a nose would know what they'd been up to, and then they're out the door. Harry shows him where he and Liam went to school, where his first kiss happened, and then they stop at the bakery he used to work at.

They're greeted by a group of cheery old ladies, who coo at them and feed them pastries as they tell the story of how they met, and how they got together. They skip the part about how they decided it was time to bond because well, that's not really something you tell old ladies over tea. Some people come in from time to time, and they all greet Harry like he is an old friend. Of course everyone would know and adore Harry, how could they not?

They go home for dinner, and they leave after that because they both got work early in the morning. Anne hugs them tightly as they say their goodbyes, Robin pats their backs, and Gemma just rustles their hair. Harry's got another playlist set up for the drive back, and he sings to every single tune as Zayn drives, one hand out the window doing what he says is the Dolphin Motion. He's absolutely ridiculous, and Zayn is so stupidly in love.

***

"I think we should move in together," Harry says one night, about a month after they decided to bond, "I mean, we're sleeping at each other's places more often than not, so... You could like, bring your stuff here, or maybe we can get a new place?"

They were in Harry's bed, and Zayn could swear Harry had already fallen asleep.

"Is this one of your delirious almost-asleep ideas, babe?" Zayn chuckles.

Harry chuckles dopily as well, but shakes his head.

"Been thinking about it for awhile, actually."

Zayn thinks about it. They do spend an awful amount of time going back and forth from each other's places, and it'd be a lot easier if they lived together. Plus, is not like they're breaking up, like, ever, so. 

"I guess we can start looking for a place tomorrow," Zayn says, because as much as Harry's place is bigger than his, it's probably not big enough for all of Zayn's stuff. Or for, you know, if they ever decide to have kids. Shit. Who would've thought Zayn would be thinking about kids. Sure, he has always loved them, he's great with them, but he never thought about having one of his own. He wonders how much of it has to do with having a mate, because, well, that's his body is programmed to do, and immediately shuts that thought down. As always, he refuses to let his body decide anything for him.

It's too soon to be thinking about kids, anyway, he tells himself.

When Zayn wakes up, Harry is already in the living room, laptop on, searching for places. He looks up when Zayn croaks a "Morning," and beams. 

"Morning!" he chirps, dimples on full display, "Go get your coffee, then come join me," he smiles. Zayn thinks it's too early for someone to be this happy, but he can't stop himself from smiling back. He fixes himself a cup of coffee, then joins Harry on the couch.

"Alright, what you got for me?"

 

It takes them a whole month to find a place they both like, and spend almost two weeks trying to get everything in its place. Zayn feels dizzy with excitement, with all of the possibilities, with the promise of the future. They have sex on every flat surface available, and against the front door twice. Zayn even convinces Harry to blow him against the kitchen sink, and bend him over the kitchen table, even if Harry says it's probably unsanitary.

When everything is in order, they throw a party, and that's when Louis decides to announce he and Liam are having a baby, because "Everyone who matters is here, so that saves us a lot of time telling people", and then it doesn't matter if Zayn thinks it's too soon to be thinking about babies, because he knows Harry is sure as hell thinking about it. He doesn't say anything, at first, but Zayn knows he's thinking. Harry has always loved,  _loved_  babies, and Zayn can feel the longing vibe coming off of him whenever they visit Louis and Liam, growing everyday Louis gets bigger as well. 

Maybe Harry doesn't say a thing because as much as Zayn can feel his desire to start a family, Harry can feel how, well, not  _unaffected_ , but how Zayn isn't on the same page as him. And it makes Zayn feel bad, knowing he's denying something Harry so desperately wants. Like, physically bad, his inner omega screaming at him to please his alpha, and that's why he tries even harder to ignore it. He won't do anything just because his body wants him to. He never did, and he won't start now. 

Months go by, and Louis' and Liam's son, Connor, is born, and things start to get worse between Harry and Zayn. Harry is absolutely over the moon in love with Connor, and never passes the opportunity to watch him so Louis and Liam can have some time alone. Zayn loves Connor too, of course, but it's killing him, to feel the emptiness Harry feels whenever they drop Connor off back at his parents house, and that starts taking a toll on them.

Zayn shuts off to try and stop himself from feeling anything, because he doesn't want to give in to his instincts, and Harry shuts off as well, maybe because he's getting tired of waiting, maybe because his connection with Zayn is so strong, he ends up feeling the same way Zayn does. Sex happens less often as time passes, till there's none at all. Everyone else notice how off the two of them are, but whenever someone brings it up to either of them, they just say they're fine, they'll get through it, until it starts getting really bad. 

Harry spends more time at work, Zayn goes to bed earlier, and they don't talk much at all anymore. Zayn starts wondering if they made the wrong decision, if they moved too fast. He still loves Harry with all his heart, but is that enough?

Still, they keep pushing through it, keep co-existing, until it all comes to a halt one night, when Harry comes in late. Zayn is already in bed when Harry joins him, and even though the lights are out, he's not even close to being asleep.

"Where were you?" Zayn asks, without even turning around to face Harry. He feels Harry stilling for a second, before going back to settling down.

"I was working, you know that."

"And who's that I can smell on you?"

Harry sighs, Zayn can even picture him rolling his eyes.

"Zayn. I work with people. It's not unusual to get a bit of their scents in me."

Zayn turns the bedside lamp on, and sits up, "You fucking live with me and you don't leave the house with that much of my scent on you, so who is it? Is it Daisy? Or Nick?"

Harry looks at Zayn, clearly annoyed. 

"Nick was cold, so I lent him my coat, then he gave it back to me, alright?"

"Bullshit," Zayn hisses.

On some level, he knows he's being irrational, knows that Harry wouldn't cheat on him, but all the pent up frustration is boiling inside him, and he can't stop once he's started.

"Are you listening to yourself, right now? D'you really think I'd do that to you?" Harry sits up as well, annoyed and offended.

"Well, you gotta be fucking someone, cuz you sure as hell ain't fucking me!" Zayn throws his arms up, raising his voice. Harry lets out this noise that's half a huff, half icy snort, and shakes his head.

"You know what, I'm not having this conversation," he says, and gets to his feet. He picks up his pillow, and goes to the closet to get a spare blanket.

"Well, am I wrong?! We haven't had sex in  _months_ , Harry, we used to do it every fucking day! I'm sorry I can't give you what you want, right now, but you can't blame me for thinking you're going after someone else!"

"So this is what  _this_  is really all about," Harry says, turning to face Zayn, and he shakes his head, looking at the floor, "You know, I've been trying to be patient with you, give you your time. And this is what I get in return. I fucking love you, Zayn, with everything that's in me, but this--this is killing me. Is killing us. We're so fucking moody  _all the time_ , sex is the last thing on my mind, right now." He throws the pillow and the blanket on the floor, and runs his hands through his hair, "I just don't get why you're being like this. Don't you think I can feel how happy you get when you're holding Connor?"

"Yeah, but that's not-I don't-I don't know if that's really me! Don't know if I want it, or is it just my being an omega or whatever!"

"Does it fucking matter?!" Harry throws his hands up, "I know you hate feeling like you have no control over this thing, but do you really think it's worth it? Don't you think by doing this you're letting it choose for you either way?" Harry looks at Zayn expectantly, and Zayn-he knows Harry's got a point, but he's always been stubborn, and this conversation is giving him a migraine. When Zayn doesn't say a thing, Harry lets out a tired breath, and picks his things off the ground, "I'd really like you to think about this, and then let me know if you don't think you're being selfish, and stubborn. Gotta know how to pick your fights, Zayn," he says with a forlorn look on his face, and leaves the room to sleep on the couch.

Zayn barely sleeps that night.

 

 

Zayn wakes up the next morning, after sleeping for about an hour, and Harry has already gone to work. He walks to the kitchen, and finds a post it stuck to the coffee machine.

"Gonna stay at Niall's tonight x"

He crumples the note, and tosses into the bin, as this uneasy feeling settles in his stomach. Zayn decides to call in sick, and sits on the couch with his coffee mug. He looks around, at the home he's made with Harry, and thinks. He thinks about Harry, and how wonderful he is. How happy he's made him. How he's never asked for much from Zayn, and how understanding he is. 

He thinks about why is it so hard for him to just let go. That's what people are supposed to do, right? Find someone, build a home, start a family. Zayn was never one to like doing what he's  _supposed_  to do, but if he's really being honest with himself, he wants all of that. Every time he gave in to his natural instincts with Harry, things were fine. More than fine, things were great, pretty much perfect. This is it, Harry is the one for him, so why is he so scared to  _let go_?

Zayn realizes then, he has no reason to feel like that. He realizes was only denying it because he is as much as an omega as he is stubborn, that in his haste to be his own person, he almost end up being completely alone. And as much as he wants to be just Zayn, the person, and not Zayn, the omega, he wants to be Zayn, Harry's mate, even more. He's got to make some changes, and he's got to make them now.

So he gets up, and texts Harry, asking him to come home so they can talk. Harry sends him a simple "alright x", but Zayn thinks that's better than a 'no'. He cleans the apartment up a bit, gets them a nice bottle of wine, and gets dressed. Then he waits.

When Harry comes home, and Zayn is already waiting for him in their living room.

"Hi," Zayn says, and gives Harry a sheepish smile. Zayn is tense, a bit nervous, but also a bit excited, and Harry probably feels it, because he smiles softly back at him, like he's relieved. This whole bond connection thing is really useful, Zayn thinks, when they can feed off each other's energy like this, when they can already tell this conversation is going to be a serious one, but not a bad-serious one. 

"Hey," Harry answers, and hangs his coat by the door. He takes a look around the living room, then back at Zayn, "Thanks for cleaning up," he says, still smiling. Zayn smiles back, and gets to his feet, walking towards Harry, and throwing his arms around his neck. Zayn wasn't really planning on doing this already, he was planning on opening that bottle of wine, sitting Harry down, and talking to him, but it's been so long since he felt anything other than nervousness coming from Harry, that he just wants to soak up as much as he can from this happy vibe that's bubbling up in him.

Harry hugs him back, which is even better, and presses his nose to Zayn's neck, breathing in as well.

"I'm so sorry," Zayn says, tangling his fingers in Harry's hair, "You were right, I was being stubborn and selfish, and I'm so sorry. I'm not gonna be like that anymore."

"Good. I'm not going to be a moody asshole anymore, promise," Harry says.

Zayn laughs, and pulls away to look at Harry, "I want to do it, too. The family thing, I want it." The spike of excitement coursing through Harry hits him hard, than it subsides.

"We don't have to do it right now, I just wanted you to have an open mind about it," he says, but Zayn shakes his head.

"I want it. Like, now. Today, as soon as possible," he says, and then he's pretty much laughing because he's happy, and Harry is  _so_  happy, it's all Zayn can feel at the moment. 

"Alright, let's do it, then."

***

They stop taking their suppressants, and make arrangements at work from when their heats and ruts come. Zayn is excited, and also scared, because that's going to be the first time he's spending his heat with Harry, and with the intent of actually having a baby. He knows when it's going to hit him, can feel himself getting antsy and hot, and Harry feels it too, can't keep his hands off of Zayn even when they're going to bed. 

Somehow, Zayn manages to fall asleep, but it doesn't take too long before he wakes up. He's feeling unbearably hot, already sweating, and his mind is so so fuzzy, it feels like he hasn't woken up yet. Harry is curled up around him from behind, arm tight around Zayn's waist, and is grinding against Zayn is his sleep. It feels like deja vu, but this time is so much better, because he knows Harry won't run away.

He turns around to face him, and starts clawing at his clothes, kissing and biting his neck. "Haz," he whines, because he needs Harry to wake the fuck up right fucking now, and whines again when Harry still doesn't wake up.  He bites particularly hard, then, and that does the trick, startles Harry into consciousness.

"Fuck," Harry breathes out, grabs Zayn's waist and pulls him closer, "shit, you smell so fucking good, babe, so good," he says, and rolls them over to get on top of Zayn. Zayn spreads his legs immediately, and pushes his hips up to rut against Harry, making them both moan. Harry kisses him then, hard and deep, and soon enough, they're naked, Harry grinding their hips together.

And that's good, always good, but not enough, and Zayn just keeps whimpering because he feels like he can't put words together, he just knows he's feeling so empty, and Harry needs to fix that,  _now_. 

Harry starts moving down Zayn's body, kissing and biting all over his body, marking Zayn up, and Zayn keens at the thought, lets go and just lets himself enjoy feeling cared for, moans at the all the way Harry is claiming him as his. By the time Harry gets to his cock, Zayn feels ready to burst already, and it only takes two of Harry's fingers inside him, and Harry's mouth around his cock for him to come, moaning loudly, back arching off the bed.

Harry swallows it all, moans with it like it's the best fucking thing he's ever tasted, and keeps going because Zayn is still hard, like he'll be until he gets Harry's knot in him, keeps fucking Zayn with his fingers. He pulls off to take a breath, and when Zayn looks down at him, he sees Harry's eyes are completely blown out, his cheeks already tinted with pink, and his mouth swollen. It's almost enough to get Zayn to come again.

Zayn reaches for him, tangles his fingers in Harry's hair, and pulls, making Harry growl, and kiss him again. Then Harry is pushing three fingers in, moving in and out easily with how wet Zayn is, and Zayn can't stop himself from fucking himself on them. As he reaches for Harry's cock and starts stroking it, Zayn vaguely wonders why the fuck they haven't been doing this already, but everything feels _so intense_ , Zayn's pleasure mixed with Harry's, their scents so strongly intertwined, and every touch so fucking amplified. 

"You ready for me?" Harry asks, and Zayn nods, because yes, he's been ready in his sleep, probably. Harry pulls his fingers out, only to replace them with his cock, pushing in all the way in one deep thrust that has Zayn coming again, sudden and unexpected. Harry holds still, even with Zayn clenching around him, and Zayn can hear him whispering words against his skin, even though he can't make sense of all of them. He hears "so beautiful", and "love you so much, and "perfect", and he feels  _so good_ , so loved and appreciated and it's everything Zayn's ever wanted.

Zayn claws at Harry's back when he feels like he can breathe again, urges him to start moving, and Harry does, pulls out almost all the way, before pushing back in. Zayn moves his hands down Harry's back, to his ass, and squeezes, tries to keep Harry inside as much as he can, and he can feel Harry chuckling breathlessly into his neck. Zayn slaps his ass and bites his shoulder and suddenly it isn't funny anymore, Harry starts thrusting faster, harder, making the headboard bang against the wall every time. 

Harry hooks his arm under Zayn's knee, is barely pulling out before pushing in, the head of his cock hitting that spot inside Zayn over and over, and Zayn feels himself getting closer to coming again by the second. Zayn's being loud, he knows, moaning and mumbling things he can't really hear, maybe he's begging, who knows. It doesn't even matter, because Harry is mumbling too, love words mixed with pure filth from what Zayn is able to gather.

"M'gonna come," Harry gasps, going harder, "Gonna fill you up so good, get you all full of me," he says, and Zayn nods desperately, tightens his grip on Harry's ass, until Harry's hips stutter, his knot popping in and locking them together, and Zayn's coming too, hard, fireworks exploding behind his eyelids, Harry's mouth latched over his mark in Zayn's neck.

He doesn't even realize he's drifted away for a bit, until he hears Harry whispering to him, asking him to come back to him, telling him how lovely he is, and how much Harry loves him. Zayn smiles dopily, and sighs, feeling warm and sated, at least for now. He blinks slowly, and Harry smiles down at him, running a hand through Zayn's hair.

"There you are," Harry says, and kisses Zayn softly.

"Hi," Zayn breathes, and holds Harry close, "Love you."

Harry grins, and nuzzles Zayn's neck, "Love you too."

 

A few months later, Delilah is born. She's the most perfect creature Zayn has ever seen. Louis says, one day, she'll be Connor's mate. Harry says he doesn't even want to  _think_  about his baby girl bonding to someone yet. Liam just laughs, Niall bounces Connor in his lap, and when Zayn says "Don't worry about it, just let go, babe," as he holds his daughter in his arms, Harry just smiles at him, because he understands that sometimes, it's the best you can do. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please, feel free to let me know what you guys thought of this, because I'm still so unsure about how I did in this verse.

**Author's Note:**

> Let me know what you think, and I'll see you next week!


End file.
